Without congressional action such as the bipartisan Senate measures that didn’t move forward last month, a lack of resources remains the main challenge at the U.S.-Mexico border, reports Nick Miroff of The Washington Post.
New data from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) indicate that screening interviews and asylum rejections have doubled since the Biden administration implemented more asylum restrictions, but border administrative resources remain strained, Miroff notes.
"People are going to keep coming, and at least in the short term, it’s hard to see how the available resources can match the arrivals," said Kathleen Bush-Joseph, an analyst at the Migration Policy Institute.
Jennie spoke about the challenges with Kimberly Atkins Stohr on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal yesterday and highlighted how true solutions involve border security alongside fixes to legal immigration and other parts of the system.
Meanwhile, in Chicago, a 60-day restriction on shelter stays led to the eviction of more than two dozen migrants on Sunday, report Christian Piekos and Michelle Gallardo of ABC 7 News.
The restriction received pushback from advocates. Local leaders and dozens of community organizers sent a letter last week urging Mayor Brandon Johnson to stop the evictions, report Mariah Woelfel and Tessa Weinberg of WBEZ Chicago.
"We need an end to this policy, as it doesn’t solve our challenges, it merely exacerbates and displaces them," the letter reads.
While my brackets are still flawless, welcome to Monday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP. A special shout-out today to Clara Villatoro for leading while I was out the past 10 days, and thanks as always to our teammates Jillian Clark and Ally Villarreal. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
DRIVING LESSONS — In Modesto, California, an 82-year-old retired professor has taught about 400 Afghan women to drive, offering them some independence in their daily activities, report Miriam Jordan and Rachel Bujalski of The New York Times. Gil Howard, or "Mr. Gil" as his students call him, offers the lessons for free. "It was my goal to drive to help the family," said Latifa Rahmatzada, who got her
license last September.
SETTLEMENT — A lawsuit settlement will address "prolonged, unfair delays" in immigration detainees’ cases, report City News Service and Richard Allyn of CBS8. The suit, filed in 2017, included claims that immigrant detainees were treated differently than other detainees and sometimes waited weeks or months for court cases to begin. One of the settlement’s stipulations: "Those who wish to see a judge promptly will have a first appearance within 11 days of entering ICE custody."
ICE FACILITIES — A new report from researchers at Colorado College details ongoing abuse at two Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers in New Mexico, reports Austin Fisher of Source NM. The report concludes that the facilities should be closed. U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico) said in a statement that he continues to urge DHS to end its contract with one of the facilities.
"Anyone in the care of the United States should be treated with the utmost respect," Luján said.
BLESSED — As thousands of Haitians flee their home country, a man known as Pastor Keke is helping arrivals in Boston land on their feet, reports Niki Griswold of the Boston Globe. Leveraging his decades of experience as a Haitian immigrant and community leader in Boston, Pastor Keke (whose full name is Dieufort Fleurissaint) offers guidance through his church and nonprofit. "He makes [the transition] so smooth and gentle for
families," said Ronnie Millar of Massachusetts’ Office for Refugees and Immigrants. "They totally trust him, and we totally trust him."
